In high speed packaging, weighing and labeling operations, after the step of wrapping a product such as meat or poultry for sale in a supermarket, the next steps are for that product to be weighed and labeled. If the product happens to be one with a flat bottom or one supported in a tray, it tends to function smoothly in a conveyorized operation. If it is a product that does not have a flat bottom, such as a whole bird poultry product or is another type of product having an irregular surface on which the product typically rests while being conveyed, the swift movement of a conventional flat horizontal conveyor may induce oscillation or wobble in the product while being conveyed. The reason for this is that in many conveyorized packaging operations, the products can be processed at speeds of 70 or more pieces per minute. That amount of speed will frequently jolt a whole bird poultry product such that it rocks on its non-flat bottom and begins to wobble.
Wobble or oscillation by itself may not present a problem if it is being transported merely to get to a destination, but when the purpose of the transport is to weigh and label the bird, unreliability and inaccuracy may occur. A wobble in the weighing operation can result in an incorrect weight. A wobble in the labeling operation can result in an improperly positioned label. In addition, the wobble on a flat open conveyor belt frequently results in an orientational misalignment of the product, further disturbing label location.
A conventional conveyor is one which has a basically flat horizontal belt, or similar supporting surface, and transports the product through the operative stations. In the case of a multiple process sequence, typically entry, weighing, and labeling, the conveyor system may be a series of short conveyors working in sequence.